Instagram creators will now have the option of signing up to the ‘Subscribers’ programme through which they can charge their followers who wish to see their exclusive content. This was revealed recently by Adam Mosseri, Head of Instagram through a video post on microblogging site Twitter.
“We want Instagram to be the best place online for creators to make a living,” said Adam Mosseri at the beginning of the video, indicating that the platform is moving toward other ‘paid content’ platforms.
“And a really important thing to creators everywhere,” Mosseri continued, “is sustainable income, because at the end of the day, if you’re a creator, you’re a business. And a great way to establish some sustainable and predictable income is through subscriptions.”
Creators who have signed up for the Subscribers programme will be able to collect a monthly fee from followers and will have a ‘Subscriber home’ tab on their profiles. By clicking the tab, followers can see exclusives and, obviously, sign up to be a subscriber.
In January, Instagram had introduced Subscriptions with support for Stories and Live video which can only be seen by paid followers. Back then, like now, Instagram had made available a badge next to the names of Subscribers who interacted with posts.
Coming to the present day, in addition, Reels and posts posted directly to subscribers will sport the ‘Subscriber’ badge and creators can also host exclusive chats, which can house up to 30 subscribers at a time, and interact with followers/fans.
As Mosseri puts it, “This is just one step on a much longer path to provide creators everywhere with a whole range of tools to be able to make a living online.”